The team advanced to a state semi-final matchup with Holyoke on Wednesday, March 14, at the MassMutual Center in Springfield. (That game was played after The Landmark went to press.)

Lanpher’s successful free throws, which may arguably go down as the biggest and most clutch points in school history, ignited a massive celebration on the Fitchburg State University hardwood, with fans erupting in euphoria over the team’s championship victory.

The late-game heroics began with just under two minutes remaining and both teams knotted at 32 apiece. Each team fought for what could be a gamewinning basket, but strong defense prevailed and it appeared that overtime would be likely.

But with time winding down, Lanpher managed to gain possession and break free for what looked like an easy layup. Holy Name’s Gabi Guenther in desperation grabbed Lanpher’s jersey and an immediate intentional foul was called. This put Lanpher at the line with 1.7 seconds on the clock with the chance to make school history. Having missed a pair of free throws with 14 seconds remaining did not affect her as she proceeded to coolly and methodically sink both to seal the win.

“I can’t even describe it. It was do or die,” Lanpher said. “I willed the ball to go in the basket and it did. Words can’t explain how happy I am. We wanted this so badly. We worked so hard all year for this.”

“She missed some free throws before that, but they called a timeout and got to the bench and we said for everyone to will that ball into the basket,” said head coach Jim Oxford, whose team improved to 19-5. “We just told her to do her job and she did it. She’s really a clutch kid. She likes that challenge and she rises to it. I thought she did a great job under pressure.”

Both teams showed up with emotion that immediately carried over onto the court. Tri-captain Bri Schnare, who led the team with 14 points on the night, opened up with a pair of baskets and both sides exchanged leads repeatedly through the first half, with Holy Name taking a 20-19 lead to the locker room at half time. The Mountaineers strong start was in contrast to their slow beginnings in quarterfinal and semifinal matchups with Algonquin and Shrewsbury.

“We listed five goals before the game and that (fast start) was number one,” Oxford said. “We were just determined we were not going to come out and be 15 points behind this team going into the third quarter. They’re such a strong basketball team and the style they play would be hard for us to dig ourselves out of that hole.”

“We said before the game that we can’t let them come out with a big lead because they’re a good team,” Lanpher said. “I told our team we have to come out with a bang. We have to fight.”

Lanpher hit for a pair of three-pointers at the opening and end of the third quarter to give the Mountaineers a 30-29 advantage going into the final quarter. Both teams defenses clamped down hard, with Wachusett managing just 4 fourth quarter points and the Naps 3, but 2 of those points (Lanpher’s game-winning free throws) will go down in school history.

“We wanted this so bad. It’s been 19 years since Wachusett has won,” said senior tri-captain Shannon Holt. “We knew we had the group and we have the chemistry together. We just knew we had to bear down and execute.”

“This team doesn’t fear anybody,” Oxford said. “I look at the schedule that we played throughout the season and see the difficult teams we played and so we know what our record is what it is because we played some really good teams. Their desire to win and how hard we worked this year paid off. We have so many young kids on this roster and really three kids with varsity experience and they all came together. Our freshmen played great today. They held up under pressure and you couldn’t tell they were freshmen. “

In the March 8 semifinal matchup, the Mountaineers prevailed in a hard-fought, come-from-behind 35-32 victory over Shrewsbury at Clark University.

Wachusett managed to overcome a 21-8 first half deficit with brilliant second half play, with captains Schnare and Holt along with Lanpher leading the way. Trailing 32-31 with time winding down, Holt connected for a basket off a perfect feed from freshman Rachel Aho to put the Mountaineers on top. Lanpher then put the second-seeded Colonials away for keeps by sinking a pair of free throws with under ten seconds remaining.